See Stock Run

On the eve of iPhone's debut, the BlackBerry steals the show. Research in Motion (RIMM), makers of the BlackBerry, announced a 73% rise in profit during their earnings call after hours today. The stock went up 17% during after hours trading, at $194 per share. Thank God they also announced a 3 for 1 stock split.

RIMM is too expensive for me right now. J. Crew (JCG) is something I would get next - God knows I spend enough of my paycheck at their stores!

United Health Care

My employer is switching our coverage from Aetna to United Health Care. Has anyone had experiences with UHC?

$10 Flight

If you ever wanted to visit Columbus, Ohio - here's your big chance to do it cheap. And I mean CHEAP. $10 each way - courtsey of Skybus. Yep, that's right. In fact, their website says:

"10 seats for $10 each – on every flight! That’s right, each and every Skybus flight has a minimum of ten seats available for just ten dollars. It’s for real – but these seats go quickly, so be sure to book early and book often!"

Too bad I still don't want to visit Columbus any time soon.

Home Exchange

I sipped a glass of Cabernet at the bar while waiting for my ex-colleague to join me for dinner at Rex Cafe tonight. The couple sitting next to me asked for entree recommendations - so we struck up a conversation. It turned out they were from Australia (the guy) and New Zealand (the girl, she wore braces, too!), but live in Hong Kong. They are in San Francisco on vacation, and they got free lodging via Home Exchange! Just like what Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet did in the movie, the Holiday. In fact, HomeExchange.com did indeed sponsor the movie. Now, how cool is THAT!! The couple they are exchanging homes with owns three properties in the States, in San Francisco (Pacific Heights), Napa Valley, and New York City (must be a nice life!). We had a nice chat - I told them how much I loved VB (Victoria Bitter, an Australian beer) when I spent a week in Sydney last summer. They told me how many similarities they found between San Fran and Sydney, and that he travels to Beijing for business all the time, and that they plan to visit China next year during the Olympics. All in all, a very cool, collected couple.

So guess who paid the annual fee of $99.95 and became the newest member of HomeExchange.com as soon as she got home tonight? :)

I'm flying to Belgium at the end of July, then taking the train to Spain. It'd be great to stay in a local residence, rather than in a hotel, for obvious reasons:

• Hotels are expensive.
• Staying in a hotel screams "I'm a tourist!". Staying in a local residence spells C-O-O-L.

I hope someone on that site wants to visit San Francisco!

Less than 100 days to go....

My ortho said she expects to debrace me by mid-September. In other words, I've got less than 100 days to go!

I'm dreaming about things to sink my teeth into once they're free of metal braces. Babyback ribs! Sticky sesame candy bars! Caramel! Corn on the cobb! Now I feel like a death row inmate planning his last meal - but the opposite. :)

Speaking of death row, did you ever see that Kevin Spacey movie titled The Life of David Gale? A clever, but wildly disturbing story. Hold the popcorn.

Old Photo

Came across an old photo (the one on the left) taken last summer. The photo on the right was taken about a month ago - in other words, about four months after the surgery. I think these two photos are about a year apart. Erin - see how I had a pointy/long chin very similar to yours? I'm no expert.... but I imagine your face will look rounder and more balanced post surgery, just like mine. Good luck! :)